MP urges action to lower risk of fuel tanker rollovers

The federal Member for Indi, Cathy McGowan, is calling for new laws requiring fuel tankers to be fitted with a safety system that reduces the risk of rollovers.

Ms McGowan is urging all states to follow New South Wales which is planning to make electronic stability control systems compulsory for all dangerous goods tankers by 2019.

It follows a plea for tougher laws from a Tarrawingee couple, whose daughter, son-in-law and two granddaughters were killed when a fuel tanker exploded after rolling into their car on the Princess Highway in 2009.

Ms McGowan says the Australian Trucking Association is backing the push, despite the cost to companies.

"We're waiting for the Minister to get back to us about what his approach to it is but our request is to talk to the other states, because it's particularly a state issue at the moment, and have conversations with them and then ... there's this whole move towards national regulation, rather than state-based regulation, so it fits into that whole category of discussion about national trucking regulation," she said.

Ms McGowan says she does not expect businesses would begrudge spending $5,000 on the upgrade.

"Clearly everyone's in favour of saving lives and making our trucks safer, so I don't think there'll be too much of a reaction against this and as we said the NSW Government has already regulated that it takes place, so there seems to be a strong level of support for it," she said.